Man spearheads campaign to save migratory birds
Print Edition
The early spring wind is chilly at 5am, when, telescope strapped to his back, Wang Sanyi sets out on his motorbike to circumnavigate the lake near his home.
Every autumn, flocks of birds migrate from Siberia to winter in the wetland near Caizi Lake, Anqing, Anhui Province. More than 50,000 birds arrived last year, including hooded cranes and oriental storks.
Wang, 66, is head of a group of locals dedicated to protecting the lake. Every day he patrols the lake on the lookout for hunters.
Forestry official He Xudong says agriculture and aquaculture in the 1970s and 1980s changed the lake. Farmers used chemical feed in their fish farms, fertilizers on their fields, and many caught migratory birds to sell.
Today, there is 17,000 hectares of wetland left, compared to almost 25,000 hectares in the past.
Wang recalls how, in the migration season, the sounds of gunshots punctuated every morning and distress calls wailed out from traps used to catch the birds alive.
In 1995, Anqing started to create wetland reserves along the Yangtze River and in 2007 the city decided to protect the marshes around Caizi. In March 2013, the first national wetland protection plan came into being. Anhui is now working on provincial legislation.
“We cannot rely solely on the government to solve our problems,” Wang said.
After retiring as a village official in 2010, he founded a wetland protection association and more than 90 percent of members are farmers.
In the migration season, a team of 20 members patrols the lake every day. They usually get up at 4am and are rarely home before 10pm. If they find anyone hunting or disturbing the birds, they report the matter to the forest police.
For Wang, combating hunters and thieves is less important than teaching the public about bird protection. His association has even composed folk songs to popularize the notion among locals.
Liu Zhicai was once a famed hunter. He could earn up to 10,000 yuan (US$1,600) each day from shooting birds.
“Old Wang came to my home many times trying to persuade me to stop hunting,” Liu said. “What he said made so much sense that I was finally unable to refuse.”
Wang frequently lobbies the villagers, warning them about the consequences of breaking the law and tempting them with the prospect of eco-tourism.
Many villagers like Liu have joined Wang’s campaign. “We have more than 300 members and volunteers,” he said. “Besides protecting birds, we also clean garbage from the lake regularly.”
Wang has sunk his entire savings into the organization and borrowed money to build an observation tower and install a monitoring network. A total of 800,000 yuan has been invested in his campaign.
For Wang, the investment is worthwhile. “I will continue to protect the birds as long as I live,” he said.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
